Moms Talk: Breastfeeding or Bottle?

Patch: Which did/do you do and why?

Sara Raymond: I've done both. Both my children were big to start (9.14 and 10.10 pounds!) and had trouble regaining birth weight. My milk supply could not get established with my first child, and I was told I had to add bottles in as well. My second child had some major health problems at birth and lost a lot of weight, and adding formula feeds was necessary for his well-being.

Carina Ibarra: Before I can even begin talking about breastfeeding vs. bottle feeding I have to make it clear that to this day my son still eats like a beast.

When I was pregnant I read all about the benefits of breastfeeding and since I was going to spend the first year at home I figured it would be in mine and baby’s best interest to give breastfeeding a try. Things went awry on the first day when after nursing for an hour, my baby was still crying and the nurses had to give him 2 ounces of formula to ease his hunger. And what you would know, my baby was crying for food an hour later.

While still at the hospital my doctor had me pump to measure my production and all production seemed normal but my baby still didn’t seem to be satisfied. I had a lactation nurse working with me to see if we could improve my son’s technique and still nothing. So I resigned myself to a life of double feeding, and I did this for the first six months until one day my baby boy refused to latch and so that was the end of that.

However, if my son hadn’t been such a hungry hippo and if he hadn’t chosen to abandon me I would have breastfed for much longer because I really enjoyed those moments of peace and tranquility. Moments when I could just bond with my baby; I could smell his hair, rub his back, enjoy this precious miracle that nowadays never stays still enough for me to shower with affection.

Christie Arias: I did a combination of the two. WIth my first baby I tried breastfeeding and it didn't work out, so I pumped and bottle fed and then just formula bottles after a few months. With my second I breastfed primarily for 12 months. My goal with each baby was to provide breast milk for the first three months.

Teresa Mills-Faraudo: I did breastfeeding for a year with both of my kids. I've heard it's the healthiest option for the babies and it helped me get some of the pregnancy weight off.

Stacy Blom: I did both. For the first six months of our daughters' lives, I breast fed but I also pumped milk and introduced them to the bottle as well. This way I had the freedom to go out and my husband, as well as others, could feed our girls with no hassles. I think I breast fed because as a new mom, everything you read said how important breast milk was for your babies and it was the best thing you could offer them.

Patch: What's the easiest or most coventient part about it?

Sara: I don't think anything is "easy" about either. Breastfeeding came with a lot of physical pain for me and emotional stress over not knowing if my baby/babies were getting enough to eat.

Bottle feeding came with the ease of mind of knowing how much he was getting to eat, but also with a lot of guilt because I wasn't successfully breastfeeding. I ended up giving up breastfeeding my older son when he was four months old because I never got the right kind of advice or support.

I've got a nearly 7-month-old right now, and I'm still breastfeeding him about 70 percent of the time, thanks to the fact that this time around I knew better on what to expect, knew what to ask and knew about my resources.

I felt like I could be a better advocate for myself as a breastfeeding mama this time around. I now feel like I have a really good breastfeeding relationship with my son, but it was not easy to get there. One friend in particular was very judgmental of our decision to use formula for a few feeds a day, and our relationship has suffered as a result.  

Carina: The best part of breastfeeding was the nighttime feedings when all I had to do was grab him and go. No need to leave my room to heat up a bottle, no need to measure out powder with a measuring spoon that never fits into the mouth of a bottle so half the formula ends up on the kitchen counter anyway. Just Mommy and baby with baby eating until he eventually drifted off to sleep.

Christie: Once you get the hang of it (and it is different with each baby), it's super nice to not have to get out of bed in the middle of the night for feedings. Also, when you are going places, you don't have to worry about how many bottles to pack and how long you will be gone, you always have what you need to feed the baby with you. Also, I think breast milk is easier on the baby's stomach and the BEST part is that the baby gets immunities from colds, sickness, etc. from the breast milk.

Teresa: All I had to do was pick up my baby and get him or her to latch on instead of going through the trouble of making a bottle.

Stacy: The easiest part about breastfeeding is always having a natural supply of milk available but as I recall, it was a lot of work too. It's also a lot cheaper to breastfeed!

Patch: What's the most challenging part about it?

Sara: The hardest part of breastfeeding for me was overcoming the physical pain and the stress of not knowing how much my child was getting, and the stress of worrying about his weight constantly.

The hardest part of bottle feeding was accepting that I was not going to be exclusively breastfeeding in the face of all the messages I receive that "breast is best," despite knowing that formula in the case of my children was really a matter of health and necessity, and dealing with the fallout of the judgment I got from one friend over the whole thing. 

Carina: The most challenging part was learning to be OK to excuse myself to breastfeed. I never was OK with breastfeeding in public. It made me very uncomfortable so I tended to make ventures out into the public domain brief. I was even uncomfortable excusing myself to my room when I had guests over or asking friends and family for privacy when I was the one doing the visiting. When I see mothers nursing in public I always want to congratulate them on their bravery.

Christie: Breastfeeding is not as easy and natural as you would think. It was very challenging for me, especially when I had latch problems. I went to a breastfeeding support group at , which was great and super helpful! The very worst part for me was the multiple breast infections, that eventually put me back into the hospital with a newborn.

Teresa: I couldn't drink much alcohol while breastfeeding because of how it could affect the baby. Also, there were certain things, like cheese and garlic, that I couldn't eat a lot of because my kids were sensitive to them and they came through my milk.

Stacy: I am a very private person and I never felt comfortable breastfeeding in public, so that was another reason I used bottles along with breastfeeding.  If there wasn't a private place for me to nurse, I either used a bottle or didn't go out! I can remember many occasions that I would be in a bedroom nursing while the family was gathered. It just wasn't my thing to nurse in front of other people!